FOSTER GHOST STORIES

In my search for something interesting to write about I thought that ghosts would be a good topic.

I don't know many Cambridge ghosts but perhaps readers might enlighten me as to how many we have in the area. As a matter of fact, the Cambridge Archives would be pleased to have a collection of stories for the files. If you care to write up a story related to our area, I would be pleased to put them together for posterity.

My younger sister Susanne, in Niagara Falls, used to live right on top of Drummond Hill, one street back of Lundy's Lane - next to the cemetery. Now, for you historians, you will remember that this is where British and Canadian colonists had the nerve to take on the Americans back in 1812. My sister swears that there is an American soldier, still dressed in his vintage uniform, hiding in the basement of the house. She and her husband moved, as it was too unnerving living with a spirit in the basement.

My daughter Hali used to live in the old house in Preston. This was about 15 years ago. This house is old - really old by Cambridge and Canadian standards. Anyway to get on with the story:

She claimed that the house always had a "presence" about it. It never frightened her but she was sure that a ghost was out and about. I said - "It's a mouse". One day she was sitting in the living room when the light in the kitchen crashed to the floor. It appeared that the three little screws that hold the globe secure came unscrewed. The result was inevitable. Ka-boom. Now I made light (pun intended) of her story. Someone, with limited mechanical abilities, just didn't put the globe in properly. End of story.

Well, one day I was working alone in the same house about 10 years later. Ka-boom - down came the light in the living room and shattered on the floor. I called it a day and went home with my hair still on end. After a while I concluded that the same person had hung both lights.

Many years later I asked the current resident if he ever had an incident with 'the ghost'. "Well, I'm not sure" he responded. "One day we were playing a dice game, on the kitchen table, when one of the dice landed on its corner and just sat there - balanced. We stared at each other before someone had the nerve to tap on the table. It wouldn't fall over until we hit the table real hard." (Scary stuff eh!)

I was relating this story to a friend. She, Janice, reciprocated with an even better story regarding a Cambridge ghost. Now as the story goes; there was a young man who lived with his mother up on St. Andrews Street. The young man had a coin collection that was his pride and joy. One day his mother became angry with him. In her moment of anger she threw his precious coin collection into the back yard.

The lad was heart broken. He searched desperately, but could not find all of the coins. He searched for hours - day after day. Later the young fellow took his own life. (Whether this was due to the loss of coins would be speculation at this stage.)

Janice recalls that many years later, a family of her acquaintance rented the house. They claimed to have seen a ghost but that he appeared to be no threat to anyone. They graciously shared the premises for several years before the family decided to move to larger quarters. On moving day, all of the furniture was taken from the house except for the washing machine in the basement. When the man went to the basement to take the washer, (the last piece of furniture ) there on the lid of the washer - someone, or something, had placed a collectable antique coin. It was as though the ghost had given a gift to the tenants for being good company to a troubled spirit (or was it partial rent?).

If you would like to read more about this subject then try a computer search using the words GHOST STORIES. You will find enough to last you a life time - and maybe even (chuckle - chuckle) two lifetimes.

Have a nice day.